About the Palladium-Item

Aug. 15, 2012 2:21 PM

Why is the newspaper called the Palladium-Item?

"Palladium" refers to the Greek goddess, Pallas Athena, whose warlike nature was provoked by injustice and interference with constructive, peaceful living. Pallas Athena was the Goddess of Wisdom and considered a symbol of protection.

The term "Palladium," denoting the protection of the rights of people, is believed to have come from Greek history where theft of a statue of Pallas Athena from ancient Troy is said to have resulted in Troy's destruction.

There are several newspapers in the United States with "Palladium" in their names. Unfortunately, no one knows for sure how the name came to be applied to the Richmond enterprise.

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The Palladium-Item is Richmond's oldest business. The first issue of the Richmond Palladium, parent of the Palladium-Item and Sun Telegram, was printed by Nelson Boon, its founder, on Jan. 1, 1831. Boon's grandfather, Squire Boon, was a brother of Daniel Boone, famous Kentucky frontiersman. Nelson Boon chose to drop the "e" in Boone.

The Palladium-Item is the third oldest newspaper in Indiana in continuous publication since its founding in 1831. The two older papers are the Vincennes Sun-Commercial, 1804, and the Lafayette Courier and Journal, 1829.

A number of consolidations have occurred since the first issue was printed on a hand press. In 1907, the Sun-Telegram, which was a combination of four newspapers between 1861 and 1897, was consolidated with the Richmond Palladium.

The Richmond Item, founded in 1877 and published in the morning starting in October 1916, was acquired in 1929.

The Palladium Publishing Corp. continued issuing the Richmond Palladium and the Richmond Item as two separate newspapers until 1939 when they were combined into the Palladium-Item, with afternoon and morning editions six days a week excluding Saturday.

In September 1977, the morning and evening papers were combined into an all-evening paper and the newspaper started publishing seven days a week.

In June 1976, the Palladium-Item became the 54th daily newspaper in the nationwide Gannett group.

In August 1976, all departments except the press and mailroom operations moved from 19 N. Ninth St. to 1175 N. A St. Operations were combined at the North A Street location in August 1984. Printing of USA TODAY began Sept. 10, 1984.

In April 1992, Gannett purchased Graphic Publications and all operations except the pressroom were moved to the Palladium-Item building.

In 1996, the Palladium-Item moved presses from the former Graphic Publications building to a newly purchased building at 739 N. 18th St.

That facility, Palladium Press, is staffed with employees who process commercial printing orders on both sheet-fed and web presses.

In 2004, the Graphic four-unit press was sold and a 10-unit community press was installed.